


Eidetic Memory

by HuiLian



Category: Batman (Comics), Birds of Prey (Comic), DCU (Comics)
Genre: Angst, Fluff, I'm enjoying this, actually, and I ended with angst, i start with fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-02
Updated: 2018-01-02
Packaged: 2019-02-27 07:45:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,590
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13243707
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HuiLian/pseuds/HuiLian
Summary: Barbara didn’t forget. She couldn’t decide if it was a good thing or not.





	Eidetic Memory

**Author's Note:**

> Told you I’m productive

**Eidetic Memory**

Barbara didn't forget.  
  
Sometimes that's a good thing.  
***  
She remembered meeting her dad for the first time. The stench of Gotham's sewers was overwhelming to her unused nose. The fleeting touch of the CPS officer, light on her shoulders. The way she gripped her bag until she could barely feel her hands.   
  
He was wearing the same trench coat he will be wearing for twenty years. The moment he saw her, he put the cigarette he had been smoking down, and turn it off. He would be smoking that same brand of cigarette for ten years before she got him to switch to cigars. When he moved towards her, there were glints on the glass of his glasses.   
  
He crouched in front of her, and he offered his hand. Barbara could hear the winds howling and the busy sounds of the city. Barbara could feel the thumping inside her chest. Barbara could almost taste the air of the city. Most of all, Barbara could see the rush of affection on his eyes.   
  
“Barbara? I'll be your father from now on.”  
  
Barbara remembered falling into his embrace, grateful to have someone, anyone.   
***  
Barbara remembered sleepovers with Dick. They would plan it for days, making sure every single detail was in place. Such were the horrors of having overprotective fathers.   
  
She didn't know why this particular one stood out.  
  
They were laughing. Dick was bent over so far, it was a miracle he didn't break. Barbara herself was laughing so hard, she her lungs didn't seem to work.   
  
The topic was mundane, actually. One of the teachers at Gotham Academy. But because it was the two of them, and because it was _Dick_ , it was extremely funny.   
  
When they finished that bout of laughter, Barbara realized that Dick was so very close to her. His body was pressed to hers, limp from laughing. His breath was deep, like he was trying to compose himself. He caught her eye, then gave her the patented Dick Grayson smile. She found herself smiling too.   
  
She breathed in. The smell of hot chocolate, courtesy of Alfred, and Dick's smell all merged into one. She leaned in even more, pressing her body to Dick's. His heartbeat was an even thump, thump, against her ears.   
  
Barbara remembered that night with the same clarity as every other night, yet she cherished this one the most.   
  
(Years later, she know why. It was the night she knew that she wanted more than just friendship from Dick.)  
***  
Barbara remembered patrols. Back when her life was simpler and her worries little.   
  
The wind made a mess of her hair that was not covered by her cowl. She could hear the gravel crunching under her boots. Her heart was beating fast with exhilaration, excitement, and physical extortion. She was breathing hard.   
  
The robber in front of her wasn't going to get away. She knew that. She smiled.   
  
Gotham seemed to understand her. The robber fell. Batgirl jumped forwards, intersecting the fall. She tied up the robber, then went to a public phone. The police hasn't learned to trust the vigilantes yet. Her father hasn't learned to trust her yet.   
  
The phone felt cold in her hands. She dialed the police station, careful to change her voice when she talked. The hustle of the station could be heard from the phone, a reminder that she had to be home soon.  She hung up, then shoot her grapple gun again.   
  
The wind hit her face. It was heaven.   
  
Barbara remembered every single time she went on patrol, and she remembered that every single time, she went home exhilarated.   
***  
Barbara remembered going out on dates with Dinah. They would go to cafes, talking about nothing in particular.   
  
The sun was hot on her skin. It was rare enough in Gotham to have the sun shining that Barbara smiled. Her hair was covering her neck and shoulders, making the hot weather even hotter for her.   
  
Dinah came, then they went in the cafe. Dinah sat down, and Barbara wheeled her chair to the table. They talked about their favorite movies, which evolved into their to-read list, which evolved into multiple ways they can conquer the world. When they got to that topic, they stopped and laughed.   
  
Barbara could smell the aromas of coffee brewing. She could hear the faint murmur of conversation all around her. She could feel Dinah's laughter vibrating through her whole body. She could see Dinah's face lightning with amusement.   
  
Barbara remembered the joy she felt forgetting about work for a few minutes.  
***  
Barbara remembered the comparatively peaceful days she spent when Dick had been Batman. She fitted with Dick much more than she fit with Bruce. And she understood Stephanie much more than she understands Cassandra.   
  
Not that she didn't work well with Bruce, or understood Cassandra. She just did it much better with Dick and Steph.   
  
It was a quiet night. Batman, Dick, was doing the last street of his patrol. Batgirl, Stephanie, had finished her patrol a few minutes ago and was hanging out with Red Robin on a rooftop somewhere in Gotham. Robin had returned to the Bunker hours ago, it was a school night after all.   
  
The sounds of her computer became a lull in the background, while Dick's chatter filled her ears. It was lighthearted enough. They were lighthearted enough, these days. Her coffee was in front of her, the mug steaming. Her fingers flew across the keys of her computer.   
  
Barbara remembered the feeling of content and peace that filled her at those nights.   
***  
Barbara didn't forget.  
  
Sometimes that was not a good thing.   
***  
Barbara remembered the crash. Lights. Car engines roaring. Asphalt, rough against her arms. Her father's breaths. Her mother's scream.  
  
There were blood. Barbara could see it, smell it. The stench of blood would haunt her dreams.   
  
Barbara could hear her parents breathing. She could hear herself breathing. In, out, in, out. Until the time she couldn't hear it anymore.   
  
When she heard the police siren, her skin was sticky with her parents' blood, and her whole body numb from being trapped under the car. When the police officers lifted her out of the wreckage of the car, her eyes didn't water, her breaths didn't hitch. She just couldn't tear her eyes from the wreckage of the car.   
  
Barbara remembered that she didn't cry then. She also remembered that she spent countless nights crying for them since.   
***  
Barbara remembered the night when Joker shot her.  She was spending the night with her father, enjoying each other's presence. The sound of the TV was in the background. They were chatting together. It was supposed to be a quiet night in.   
  
The doorbell rang. She stood up. The door handle felt cool under her hand. She pushed it down.  
  
Bang.   
  
She heard the gunshot before she felt anything. Then pain. Just pain. She heard her father scream. She heard the Joker laugh.  
  
She fell down. The floor was hard on her back. The pain from the gunshot intensified. Her legs was bruised from the impact.   
  
Barbara remembered the last thing she ever felt in her legs was pain.   
***  
Barbara remembered the fire. It was everywhere on the news.  
  
Dick came to her. His eyes was swollen. Barbara could barely recognize him when he opened the door.   
  
He fell to the ground in front of her. Barbara heard the thud before she could process what had just happened. Then she heard something she would never forget even if she didn't have photographic memory. Dick was crying.   
  
Barbara went to him. She could feel the tears running though his cheeks. She could feel his chest heaving up and down. She could hear his sobs.   
  
Barbara remembered that she wished she could take away some of his pain.   
  
(Barbara also remembered kicking him out of her apartment the next day. She didn't have to remember the regret she felt, because she was still feeling it, even now.)  
***  
Barbara remembered panic. The whole of Gotham was in panic. She was in panic, and Batman was not. At least, not on the surface.   
  
She remembered saying the activation words. She remembered chaos all around her, and she remembered how she knew she was going to cause more chaos. She remembered knowing it would save Bruce's life. She activated the self-destruct mode.   
  
She could hear the blast that would bring the Tower down. She could see blocks of concrete falling down. She could feel the heat encompassing her. She could feel her heart beating, maybe for the last time.   
  
Barbara remembered waking up on rubble, unsure whether or not she was alive.   
***  
Barbara didn't remember pain in her legs when James stab her. She couldn't feel it. But she remembered the smell of blood. The same smell that she had smelt for a considerable portion of her life.   
  
She didn't remember the knife going in. She didn't remember the pain that followed. But she remembered the way her clothes itched, the way her glasses slide down on her nose. She remembered the glint on James' glasses, and she remembered his voice.   
  
The Gotham night was dark, she could barely see into the room. Yet she didn't need her sight to feel James' hand on her body. She didn't need her sight to hear Gotham, never quiet even in the dead of night.   
  
Barbara remembered feeling terrified, for her father, for Dick, for James, and for herself.   
***  
Barbara didn't forget.   
  
She couldn't decide if it was a good thing or not

 

**Author's Note:**

> See, this fic was made because I read that Barbara had photographic memory, and I wanted to explore that. And also, the line where Babs and Dinah were talking about movies and it went into world domination? That happened with me and my friends, so, yeah.
> 
> check out my tumblr (huilian.tumblr.com)


End file.
